Neeson encounters some turbulence in 'Non-Stop'

Friday

Feb 28, 2014 at 6:00 AM

By JANE HORWITZ The Washington Post Writers Group

"Non-Stop" PG-13 — Liam Neeson saves the day yet again, this time as an air marshal.

High-schoolers who don't mind their action heroes a little haggard and no longer young can get an adrenaline jolt from this formulaic flick as it pushes our post-9-11 fear buttons, including racial profiling, and then debunks a few of them.

"Non-Stop" is a tad violent for middle-schoolers. Grungy, sad and hollow-eyed from too much booze and not enough sleep, Neeson's Bill Marks may be an air marshal, but he still grips the armrest on takeoff.

The anonymous texter is on the plane and knows who Bill is, though air marshals travel undercover.

The texter warns that he'll kill a passenger every 20 minutes unless he gets $150 million.

As tension builds and deaths occur, the texter incriminates Bill as the bad guy — an air marshal gone rogue. Bill must hunt for the killer among people who don't trust him. The finale is not for nervous fliers.

THE BOTTOM LINE: The violence isn't bloody, but it involves neck-breaking, head-banging, pistol-whipping, shooting and an explosion. Characters drink and use a few moderate swear words. A subplot involves illegal drugs.

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